Travelers passing through Yemen’s Sanaa International Airport, which is controlled by the Iran-backed Houthi militias, end up spending more than half a day there to complete procedures due to the militias’ practices.
The airport has been turned into a Houthi hub for tracking and humiliating politicians and activists of both genders, according to six passengers who spoke to Asharq Al-Awsat.
People who have left Yemen in the past two months through the airport have mentioned that the travel ordeal begins with obtaining a seat from Yemenia Airlines’ offices in militia-controlled areas.
Houthis have restricted the booking procedures through a special room managed by a cell of its internal intelligence apparatus, known as the Preventive Security, established by the Hezbollah militias.
According to sources, this cell has control over the number of seats and the identities of individuals who obtain reservations from Sanaa to the Jordanian capital, as well as on return flights from there for those coming from other countries via Jordan.
Travelers said the ticket prices are significantly higher in militia-controlled areas compared to government-controlled areas. They are being sold for $500 in government regions and $800 in areas held by the Houthis.
The militias have exploited people’s need to travel and their inability to afford traveling by land to government-controlled areas, which would take approximately 12 hours by car. Meanwhile, passenger buses take at least 18 hours to cover the same distance.
According to many Sanaa residents, when a person goes to the airline office to purchase a ticket, the employees inform them that all seats are reserved.
However, upon leaving the office and reaching the gate, ticket brokers approach them and offer any number of seats in exchange for a bribe of one hundred dollars per seat.
Sources confirmed that the Houthis have exploited the circumstances of travelers heading abroad, whether for medical treatment, education, or returning to their jobs.
Houthis are abusing the travelers’ inability to endure the overland journey to Aden, which takes around 12 hours, in addition to the cost of renting transportation vehicles, which can reach $600 roundtrip.
